Hawaii wildfires: Family of four, including child, found dead in car
Just hours before the catastrophic fire broke out, Salote and her son posted photos online.
Tributes are flowing for a Hawaiian family of four found dead in their burnt-out car days after going missing while trying to flee the horrific wildfire that razed Maui.
Faaso and Malui Fonua Tone, their daughter Salote Takafua, and her son Tony Takafua were discovered not far from their Lahaina home on Thursday, their loved ones confirmed on Sunday.
“On behalf of our family, we bid aloha to our beloved parents, Faaso and Malui Fonua Tone, as well as our dear sister Salote Takafua and her son, Tony Takafua,” the family said in a statement to Hawaii News Now. “The magnitude of our grief is indescribable, and their memories will forever remain etched in our hearts.”
In a TV news report, the publication’s reporter Jolanie Martinez could be heard trying to fight back tears as she announced the tragic deaths of all four community members.
Before their remains were found, relatives posted pictures of Fasso, Malui, Salote and Tony online and urged others to “please be on the lookout”. “They lived on Kuhua Street in Lahaina and we haven’t been able to get into contact with them at all. We believe that they are all together,” one relative wrote on Facebook.
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Mum's last post with son
The most serious wildfire swept into Lahaina on Tuesday and destroyed nearly every building in the town of 13,000, leaving a grid of gray rubble wedged between the blue ocean and lush green slopes.
Just hours before the catastrophic blaze, Salote posted a video if her sitting on a beach enjoying the vibrant sunset, as well as several selfies with her son Tony. “We livin life to the guy with no regrets … let’s gooo,” she said. In a video she can be seen hanging out with a friend while enjoying the picturesque scenery.
“This is so sad,” one person commented on the post, while others said they were “devastated”.
With AP
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